University Libraries Promotion and Tenure Recognition

Dr. Rosecrance was my dissertation advisor at UCLA. This book, written in the mid-1980s, had a great impact both on my work and on the political science field. In it, Dr. Rosecrance went against the grain of the Reagan years to argue that a country's economic potential can be more important in international affairs than its military might. Within a few years the collapse of the seemingly-mighty Soviet empire helped prove his point. This insight helped inspire my own dissertation on the role of Germany's economic influence in bringing about German reunification, which eventually became Deutsche Mark Diplomacy (Penn State Press, 2002). Since then I have found that the role of economic leverage in world affairs is a very rich field. For example, I have recently completed several articles examining the role of U.S. economic aid and sanctions in persuading countries to abandon their nuclear arms programs. In addition to its role in my own work, this book deserves to be recognized for its great impact as a classic work of international relations literature. It is also a very well-written book, accessible to general readers and undergraduates as well as specialists.